The 4 Main Systems of Your Home Explained

Your home remains functional because of four main systems: electrical, heating, air and plumbing. While you may not pay much attention to your main home systems until there is a problem, each one works to keep your home comfortable and safe.

Here, we'll describe these four main home systems so that you'll have a better idea about how your home operates.

Electrical System

At its most basic, your electrical system takes electricity from your utility's electrical system and sends it throughout your home. In your home, you have a meter that monitors electrical usage, circuit breakers to interrupt electrical flow if there is a problem and wiring through which electricity flows to the rooms in your home. Common household electrical problems may include, faulty light switches, dead outlets, breakers that trip and flickering lights.

Heating System

Your home heating system is comprised of a central heating function, your furnace or heat pump, which heats your home via air ducts that send heated air to your home's different rooms. Some furnaces operate at 90 percent efficiency or more to heat your home.

Air System

Your air conditioning system works by using a refrigerant, a substance that changes from a gas vapor to a liquid, to "collect" the hot air from your home. That hot air is then sent through the pipes of your air conditioning system and transferred outside. The compressor is the part of the system that pumps the refrigerant into the system, while the condenser chills the hot refrigerant into a cooler substance. Finally, the expansion valve, a tiny part of the system, transforms the cooled refrigerant into a cool mist.

Plumbing System

Lastly, the plumbing system of your home has two parts: one part brings fresh water into your home, and the other takes wastewater out. This first part, the water that enters your home, must be in a pressurized system that lets the water travel throughout your home, even to upper floors. The hot water system is separate from the cold because a pipe must travel through your water heating system before moving through the rest of the house.

Overall, your drainage system, which consists of vents, traps, and cleanouts, is built at a downward angle toward the public sewer lines or septic tank to remove waste from your home.

If you're familiar with the basic functioning of your main home's systems, you're better able to maintain your property. But certainly, you don't have to be an expert on any one system. The professional at Ragsdale Heating, Air, Plumbing & Electric will keep each of your home's system functional with routine maintenance.